Benjamin Banneker – America’s First Clock

Known as the first African-American scientist, Benjamin Banneker invented a wooden clock that struck on the hour. He built the clock in 1753 a the age of 22 and scholars believe he modeled it after a borrowed pocket watch, which he studied after taking it apart piece by piece.

He built his wood clock entirely with indigenous American parts, with each wood part and pinon hand-carved to scale. It continued to work reliably until Banneker’s death in 1806.

In addition to inventing his clock, Banneker studied astronomy and made astronomical calculations to predict solar and lunar eclipses. In the early 1790’s, he worked with a team of surveyors to plot the federal district that would become Washington, D.C.